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Zack and Miri Make a Porno

Plot
Lifelong platonic friends Zack and Miri look to solve their respective cash-flow problems by making an adult film together. As the cameras roll, however, the duo begin to sense that they may have more feelings for each other than they previously thought.

Release Year: 2008

Rating: 6.9/10 (80,249 voted)

Critic's Score: 56/100

Director:
Kevin Smith

Stars: Seth Rogen, Elizabeth Banks, Craig Robinson

Storyline Zack and Miri are two lifelong platonic friends who make an adult film to pay the rent of their apartment. With their friend Delaney, the couple set out for auditionees for their porn film, but in the process of filming, they realize they feel more for each other than they had before.

For those that don't already know, the second half to that "Zack and
Miri" title is "Make a Porno", three little words that have caused a
lot of fuss lately. In addition to being deliberately shortened on TV,
Kevin Smith (Clerks, Chasing Amy) has had to fight for even the
R-rating, a teaser trailer had to be removed from his website, the
posters for the flick were so raunchy that the characters could only
appear as stick figures(of which Seth Rogen is assuredly not), and
already certain theaters have decided not to show it while openly
showing Saw V and Max Payne without a moments hesitation. All this for
one of the years nicest romantic comedies. "Zack and Miri" is vintage
Kevin Smith, blending the cheerily offensive with heartfelt
sentimentality, and while its nothing groundbreaking or even terribly
gratuitous (sure there are some cock and ball, ass, and boob shots but
what comedy doesn't have those now-adays), it's also one of Smith's
most successful attempts with the formula.

Seth Rogen plays Zack and Elizabeth Banks plays Miri, two best friends
living in a crummy little apartment in Pittsburgh. The bills are
stacking up , the heat and electricity have been turned off and they're
about to be thrown out on their ass. What do two struggling
thirty-somethings do? While crashing their High School reunion, they
discover that the school's former Quarterback (Superman Return's
Brandon Routh) is actually gay and the boyfriend of gay porn star
Brandon (Justin Long). This gives Zack an idea and after ruminating
over it for a night, he and Miri both decide that a cheap porno is the
only way to solve their money woes. They enlist the help of Zack's
coffee shop co-worker Delaney (Craig Robinson) to be producer and also
bring on a rag tag team of actors (Jason Mewes, Jeff Anderson, Traci
Lords, Katie Morgan, and Ricky Mabe), first to shoot the movie "Star
Whores" with such characters as R2-Teabag, Hung Solo, and Darth
Vibrator and then when that encounters a shooting problem, they decide
to do a coffee shop porn called "Swallow my Cock-Ucinno".

The problem Smith often encounters is that sometimes it feels like he's
throwing F-words, vibrator, pussy, and jerk-off jokes at us a little
too easily and it doesn't really jive well with the sweeter side that
comes later. As an example, watch "Jersey Girl." Just here he has a
good balance for the most part. It starts off a little shaky but
settles in nicely with crude jokes that earn big laughs. A diarrhea gag
is priceless, a character named Bubbles has a unique talent, and the
names themselves are great fun, take the David Mamet inspired "Glen and
Garry Suck Ross' Cock" for example. It gets gooey but Smith keeps
things down to Earth with an endearing love story about sex and the
jealousy and uncomfortable and sensitive nature that surrounds it. It's
nothing new. Everything mentioned has been explored to death on every
network sitcom ever produced but it keeps its sweetness and that's
really what counts here.

Rogen is a big, doughy, lovable ball of enthusiasm and he's always fun
to watch. And Banks is adorable, has good comedic chemistry with Rogen
but most importantly both actors bring a gentle and heartwarming
romance to the screen. The rest of the cast is a big help, starting
with "The Offices" Craig Robinson, who nails every line the character
has, whether it's defying what he believes to be racism, talking about
his wife, or nervously auditioning porn stars, he's the funniest
character in the movie hands down. A close second is Justin Long,
hilariously flamboyant and filled with gay pride to the point of being
applause-worthy, this character deserves his own movie. And Jason Mewes
is at his crude best in every scene he's in. "Zack and Miri" gets very
good performances from everybody and it manages to do what a lot of
romantic comedies this year have not been able to do, which is earn the
laughs and earn the love of it's two characters. It's funny, fun, and
you don't even need a condom to enjoy it. Let's see "Max Payne" try to
make a similar claim.